Ph.D. Student Puts New Lens on Passport Photos

What do you want the world to know about you? Michigan State University Ph.D. student Vivek Vellanki asked 50 local immigrants of all ages and nationalities to answer this question. But he wasn’t collecting words. He gave them their own passport photo — simple, blown up to poster size. He also provided supplies they could use to change their images…

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Two Professors to Receive Quality in Teaching Awards

Two Professors from the College of Arts & Letters are recipients of the 2019 Mid-Michigan Spartans Quality in Teaching Award, which recognizes excellence in classroom instruction through the incorporation of research and innovative learning opportunities. Christopher Frilingos, Professor in the Department of Religious Studies, and Jonathan Choti, Assistant Professor in the Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian & African Languages, will…

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2019 Haunted Aud Tells a Tale of Vengeance

MSU’s Department of Theatre invites you to join them for a vengeful evening at the 11th annual Haunted Auditorium scheduled for October 25, 26, and 31. Filled with supernatural scares and chilling tales, the Haunted Aud is perfect for a Halloween spook. This year’s production, Vengeance, will use all three floors of the auditorium to tell the tale of a wronged character exacting revenge on…

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Citizen Scholars Program and Study Abroad Open Up More Possibilities for Post-Graduation

Citizen Scholar Brooklyn Rue explored more possibilities for post-graduation during the Literature in London study abroad program. This six-week summer program connects students with various writers, poets, and playwrights in London while also visiting cultural sites connected to the courses. “It was really cool to meet with people whose careers revolved around writing and to be able to see a…

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Author Selected as Womxn of Color Initiative Visiting Artist

The Womxn of Color Initiative (WOCI) is bringing Elaine Castillo, author of America is Not the Heart, to campus next week as its Fall 2019 Visiting Artist, and is inviting the public to come hear her talk on Wednesday, October 16, at 6 p.m. at the MSU Broad ArtLab, 565 E. Grand River Ave. in East Lansing. America Is Not the…

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Citizen Scholar Interns in Argentina

Citizen Scholar Carla Simone experienced a different culture while teaching English to students in first through seventh grade at Colegio Norbridge in Buenos Aires, Argentina, as part of a two-month summer internship. “The program in Argentina made me learn things about myself that I did not previously know,” Simone said. “I learned how to adapt to any situation, to be…

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New Adaptation of ‘Frankenstein’ Examines Gender Norms Through Non-Traditional Casting

Michigan State University’s Department of Theatre is presenting a new adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic gothic horror novel, Frankenstein. Through the use of some creative casting, the production examines the themes of gender norms and the plight of humanity at the hands of a thoughtless creator.  The new adaptation, developed in 2018 by Southwest Shakespeare Company co-Producing Artistic Director Quinn Mattfeld, more closely follows the original…

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Alumnus Reflects on His Time with SLS

MSU’s Second Language Studies (SLS) Program welcomed scholars from around the world to present their research at the 42nd annual Second Language Research Forum (SLRF) September 20-22. One of the four plenary speakers at the forum was Luke Plonsky, who received his Ph.D. in Second Language Studies from MSU in 2011 and who organized MSU’s previous SLRF in 2009. “It…

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Professor Receives Research Award, Selected to EuroSLA Executive Committee

Aline Godfroid, Associate Professor of Second Language Studies and TESOL, is being recognized for her outstanding research in the area of second language acquisition and recently was elected to the Executive Committee of the European Second Language Association (EuroSLA) and will serve as Secretary of that committee.  A leading scholar in the use of eye-tracking, Godfroid was named the 2019 recipient of the TESOL Award for Distinguished Research for her study, “Incidental vocabulary learning…

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Writing the Next Chapter for Spartans

The College of Arts & Letters has a new endowed faculty position thanks to the generosity of MSU alumna and former Ohio State Senator Karen Gillmor, who has been giving back to Michigan State University for the past decade. The Karen L. Gillmor, Ph.D. Endowed Professorship in Professional and Public Writing, created in Gillmor’s name, will help recruit and retain…

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